It is now quite common: as soon as a phenomenon comes to light, various companies and individuals file patents in order to block names associated with it, in order to profit financially. The Victor Wembanyama phenomenon is no exception to the rule, as the San Antonio Express-News reveals.
For months, several patents have been filed for the terms “Victor Wembanyama”, “Wembanyama”, “Wemby” or “The Wemby” in the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Patents that affect all areas since we are talking about sportswear of course, but also luggage, umbrellas, cryptocurrencies, collector cards or even umbrellas. A restaurant in San Antonio has also registered the term “The Wemby” for a cocktail on its menu.
“Wild” patents
Initiatives that risk being legally blocked by the first choice of the last Draft and his camp.
The lawyer for Putian City, a Chinese company that registered the name “Wembanyama” just before the Draft so that it could be used on “goods, in particular sports shorts, for commercial purposes”, thus recognizes that the patent should be abandoned, even if this is still not the case and that the brand has become accustomed to these “wild” patents since it had already tried to block the term “The Warriors”. Without success.
